With no shortage of human-caused tragedy in the headlines, such as Monday’s Boston Marathon bombings, it’s easy to be fooled into thinking that humanity is sinking ever deeper into an abyss of evilness. But, as demonstrated by the many acts of heroism during the aftermath of the Boston bombings and the steadfast togetherness demonstrated in that city in the days since, the force of good is ever-present and powerful.
Here in St. Albert there is plenty of recent evidence that the goodness in people is powerful and enduring. A good case in point is the list of volunteer of the year candidates, unveiled this past week. Each of the five nominees is a formidable force of volunteering, taking on more than seems humanly possible in an effort to ensure that various charities and non-profit groups can provide their valuable services to the community.
“I know a lot of people who volunteer as much or more than I do,” said Jennifer Smid, one of the nominees.
Smid is no doubt downplaying her own contributions but there’s also much truth to her comment. For every volunteer of the year nominee there are dozens of active volunteers who give generously of their time in an effort to make the community a better place. People like these are the driving force behind seniors’ programs, fun runs, youth sports teams, local theatre, etc.
And St. Albert’s young people continue to show that the future is in good hands. Nowhere is this demonstrated so poignantly than in the recently-announced Leaders of Tomorrow Awards (see story, page 24). The individuals and groups named have combined to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars and contribute to the strength of dozens of non-profit groups.
As stated in the story by reporter Scott Hayes, the crop of youth volunteers was so outstanding that CIVC created a new award called the Youth Volunteer Philanthropy Award. The first winner is the organizing group behind the annual Bellerose Bike-A-Thon, a wildly successful fundraising effort that mobilizes an entire 900-student high school. The school raised more than $270,000 for cancer charities this year.
Other local fundraising drives also reported stellar results this year. In March the firefighters’ annual Rooftop Campout raised more than $47,000 for Muscular Dystrophy Canada, smashing its goal of $20,000. And earlier this month a 12-hour street hockey marathon organized by J.J. Nearing elementary students raised about $10,000 for a children’s project in Africa, far surpassing its goal of $2,500. These are just two examples of many.
So let’s remember that, for every person who creates headlines by detonating a bomb, going on a shooting rampage or scamming people out of their money, there are dozens, hundreds and thousands of good people who are quietly and diligently working to make the world a better place.
